Savanna Resources Sept 29

Noranda Exploration, for example, optioned the 340-acre property in 1981 and then dropped it a year later after drilling 18 holes. In 1983, Rayrock Mines did more drilling before turning over a project that was known at the time to host 3.3 million tons of grade 1.46% copper, 3.32% zinc, 0.055% cobalt, 0.44 oz silver per ton and 0.114 oz gold.

Depressed metal prices prevented anyone else from getting involved at Turner Albright until early July when Aur Resources (TSE) stepped up to the plate. The Toronto-based company, which is already exploring an 18-million-ton copper/zinc rich massive sulphide project near Val d’Or, Que., has agreed to earn a 51% stake in the Savanna project.

According to Aur Vice-president Howard Stockford, Aur was looking for promising projects in the western U.S. when it was offered a chance to participate at a project with similar characteristics to its own Val d’Or massive sulphide discovery.

Reserves outlined so far at Turner-Albright occur as three vertically stacked horizons that trend northeast with a moderate southeast dip. Sulphide minerals identified so far include pyrite, sphalerite, chalcopyrite and linnaeite, with trace amounts of tetrahedrite, stannite, galena and pyrrhotite.

“The fact that Noranda had the project and then dropped it probably means that it’s pretty good,” joked Stockford. “Noranda usually buys its way back into these things.”

As indicated by investor interest in Savanna Resources after the deal was announced, the two companies appear to be a good match. After the terms of the joint venture were released, Savanna shares shot up from 50 cents to $1.10 on the Alberta Stock Exchange and they are trading at around 80 cents .

“We have had the property for a number of years and we needed someone to carry it to the mining phase with some authority,” Savanna President John Alston told The Northern Miner recently.

While Aur has agreed to spend $2.25 million on exploration to earn its interest, a $300,000 preliminary drilling program is under way. “We are just trying to get a feel of what the potential is,” said Stockford, in claims that further drilling might lead to a significant reserve increase. Metallurgical tests on Turner-Albright material is being conducted at laboratories in Lakefield, Ont.

The deposit is in the side of a hill on the Oregon-California state line, two miles west of a highway. According to Alston, one of the main lenses could easily be reached via a 3,000-ft decline driven in at an angle of 5-10 degrees .

But Aur isn’t expected to commit itself to underground exploration until results of the preliminary drilling program are released together with a comprehensive report. The report is expected to be tabled later this month.

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